Prevalence of bulimia among college students

The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence, correlates, and consequences of bulimia in two samples of college undergraduates. The study included surveys of randomly selected samples of male and female students attending two large universities in the Boston area. The first (University 1) is a prestigious and highly selective institution; the student body of the second (University 2) is more heterogeneous. The data were collected at University 1 in 1982 and at University 2 in 1984.

Questionnaires were distributed to 1200 students (800 women and 400 men) at each school. The survey instrument contained questions on demographic and family background, social relationships, athletic activities, academic performance, weight and dieting history, general eating patterns and attitudes, drug consumption (including alcohol and caffeine), family health history, and bulimic and related symptomatology. The response rates were 76% at University 1 (N = 908) and 53% at University 2 (N = 633). In both groups, three-quarters of the respondents were female. A follow-up questionnaire was distributed to all bulimic women and a matched subsample of normal eaters at University 2. In-depth individual interviews designed to explore in detail eating attitudes and behaviors were also conducted with 32 bulimic and non-bulimic participants.

The Murray Center holds questionnaires, transcripts of the interviews and computer-accessible data from the questionnaires. A follow-up study is also available at the center (see Heatherton, A1023).